Sealed Sentiments
by yukuro
Summary: Mizuno gets flustered over a slight miscomprehension of events. Shige, on the other hand, is excellent at manipulating them. [MizunoxKazamatsuri]


**Disclaimer:** yuku, fortunately or unfortunately, does not own Whistle!  
**Pairing:** Mizuno x Kazamatsuri  
**Note:** 2) news; letter

**Sealed Sentiments**

By: yukuro

If it was in the past, Mizuno might have been used to it. At the present time, however, Mizuno found it quite odd for Shige to be skipping soccer club for the day. When he questioned Kazamatsuri about their missing teammate, the shorter boy smiled cheerfully in a way that made Mizuno himself want to smile and explained that the older boy had stayed in class and mysteriously stated that he had "something important to do." As much reluctant as he was to be leaving the club, or perhaps just Kazamatsuri in particular, Mizuno supposed it _was_ his duty as captain to retrieve the ditcher.

"What are you up to this time?" Mizuno asked with an exasperated sigh as he slid open the door of the classroom Shige was currently sitting in. With the way Shige beamed brightly back at him, Mizuno had the suddenly almost painful feeling that he should be worried.

"Something important," the bleached blonde replied in a cheerfully vague way, clicking on his mechanical pencil for more lead. "Why do you ask? Are you interested, Tatsu-bon?"

"O-Of course not," Mizuno scoffed, flushing slightly. He was a terrible liar. The satisfied look on Shige's face effectively told him he had been found out as well. Shifting his gaze towards the wall, Mizuno plopped down in the seat in front of his friend, conveniently located next to a window overlooking the soccer field. Doing his best to avoid the amused grin Shige had directed at him, Mizuno admitted in a mutter, "Maybe just a little."

"That's good," Shige chirped, cheerfully continuing to write painstakingly neatly on some ridiculously flowered paper. Off-handedly, he commented, "This _is_ concerning you, after all."

Curiosity growing to an enormously pressured amount, Mizuno casually glanced over his shoulder to take a peek at what was written on the paper. Before he could catch even a glimpse, Mizuno was forced to squeeze his eyes shut when Shige suddenly flicked his forehead playfully.

"Dame, dame," the older boy chastised teasingly in a singsong tone while wagging a finger before Mizuno's squinted eyes. "Sorry, but I can't allow you to read."

"What's so important to be writing about so secretly?" Mizuno grumbled, his fingers massaging the place were Shige had flicked. Slight ill humor in his voice, Mizuno asked with sarcasm, "Is that supposed to be a page of your diary or something?"

"What are you saying?" Shige asked mildly, still writing diligently, "The only pages of my _diary_ I should be hiding are the ones that have all the dirty things I've thought about you, right?"

It took several seconds for Mizuno to process this comment.

"…W-WHAT?"

"Calm down, calm down, Tatsu-bon!" Shige laughed after being hit on his head by a book, courtesy of an embarrassedly outraged Mizuno. "It was just a joke! Lighten up, eh?"

Once Mizuno stopped fuming and calmed himself down, his curiosity returned. He tried distracting himself by staring out the window, examining his team as they had practice, but in the end, his curiosity still took hold. Eyes shifting towards the paper planted on Shige's desk, Mizuno asked finally, "What are you writing, Shige?"

"Guess," Shige said with a grin.

"An obituary?" Mizuno guessed dully.

"That's not a happy thought, Tatsu-bon," the older boy commented, still grinning cheekily.

"What are you writing then?"

"A love letter," Shige responded easily, his amused, stretched-out grin still quirking his lips.

Mizuno paused and blinked. Slowly, he turned to gaze at his friend. "No," he said, "Seriously."

"I'm very serious."

It was not very convincing, Mizuno thought to himself, with the way Shige was grinning so…indiscreetly to the point which it began to bother him. Mizuno sighed. He could never tell if Shige was being serious or not. "At the risk of being gullible, I'll believe you," Mizuno sighed, running a hand through his long bangs. "Whom are you writing it to?"

"Kaza, of course," Shige replied cheerfully without missing a beat.

Suddenly, the world stopped spinning. The surroundings faded grayscale, and Mizuno felt his breathing slow until it almost stopped completely.

As Shige's cheerful humming slowly faded away in his mind, Mizuno felt his brows furrow in deep concentration. Though it may have been selfish of him, he had always thought that he knew Shige best. If there were any signs of…of well, Shige _liking_ Kazamatsuri, Mizuno thought that surely _he_ would recognize immediately. The thing that bothered him the most however, was that he was not feeling upset because Shige had not shared his secret with him. Mizuno was more upset that it was Kazamatsuri that Shige liked.

Kazamatsuri always smiled innocently and sincerely, gentle yet fierce determination shining in his eyes. He was always kind and honest, making him easily likeable. It was impossible for anyone to dislike him, Mizuno thought somewhat bitterly to himself. Was it too selfish of him to want to keep the ever-smiling Kazamatsuri to himself?

Mizuno continued to sit quietly as Shige cheerfully continued his best effort at writing neatly. As he miserably watched the bleached blond work, Mizuno sat glumly, silently sulking in a way that he knew seemed childish. In attempt to redirect his gaze, Mizuno turned his head to gaze out the window. Almost as if of habit, his eyes found Kazamatsuri standing on the field.

He was smiling as always, the same way he always did. His expression seemed humble and somewhat embarrassed all the time, making him the perfect picture of innocence. Wincing when he saw Kazamatsuri trip and fall face first onto the grass, Mizuno leaned a bit closer to the window. True, he _was_ a bit clumsy, but once he got up again and laughed sheepishly at himself, everyone around him would immediately smile and laugh back. Kazamatsuri had that effect on people. Mizuno of all people knew best.

It was Fuwa that first extended his arm to help Kazamatsuri to his feet, Mizuno noticed with his brows furrowed. He hated to admit it, but seeing the way Kazamatsuri was constantly smiling extra widely and being rather overly friendly with Fuwa made Mizuno feel…jealous. That was the unspoken reason of why he felt uncomfortable around Fuwa. Sure he was there to learn more about soccer, but the reason he was learning about soccer was to be around Kazamatsuri. That fact did not sit particularly well with Mizuno.

"You're ok with this, right?" Shige asked suddenly, breaking the other boy's train of thought. Despite the gloomy expression on Mizuno's face, Shige was still smiling rather cheekily.

Mizuno paused for a long time. Of course he was not "ok" with Shige sending some ridiculous "love letter" to Kazamatsuri. Of course he was not "ok" with other people being overly friendly with Kazamatsuri. _Of course_ he was not "ok" with other people _liking_ Kazamatsuri. But still… Closing his eyes, Mizuno gave out a deflated sigh, "I guess. It's none of my business."

There was no way he could express those kind of thoughts.

"Of course it's your business," Shige insisted with a grin, tapping the top of his friend's head with his pencil. "This kind of thing is very important for you. This could change your relationship with Kaza."

Flushing furiously, Mizuno sent a glare at the older boy before turning abruptly to glare darkly at the wall. "Don't be ridiculous," he scowled. "Your ridiculous love letter has nothing to do with me."

"Don't be difficult, Tatsu-bon," the older boy stated in a teasing tone. "If it bothers you, I won't send it."

It was annoying the way Shige kept pressing the topic, and Mizuno was growing more and more irritated.

"So what if it bothers me?" Mizuno scowled, not bringing his eyes to meet the other boy's. "Maybe I _am_ a little jealous, but that has nothing to do with it! Just because I _maybe_ like Kazamatsuri a little doesn't mean you can't like him either! Even though it really…makes me kind of angry…"

Shige blinked at his younger friend. Slowly, his grin widened and before he could give an explanation, he burst out laughing. "Tatsu-bon, you're too cute!"

Face angrily red, Mizuno buried his face in his hands. Self-loathing surfaced once he realized that he had said just a little too much. He muttered in mortification, "You don't have to laugh."

"Tatsu-bon, you dolt," Shige laughed, ruffling the other boy's hair. "Who ever said _I_ like Kaza? Didn't I tell you from the beginning this completely involves you?"

Confusion pushing away his embarrassment, Mizuno peeked up at the blond. "…what? Then that letter…?"

Grinning, Shige sealed the envelope as Mizuno sat up slowly. Without explanation, the older boy quickly pressed the envelope up to Mizuno's lips. As Mizuno's brows furrowed, Shige stuck his tongue out and quickly scribbled on the envelope. Flipping it over, he held it up before Mizuno's eyes. Smirking, he said with a laugh, "Take a better look, Tatsu-bon."

Mizuno squinted at the envelope for a long time before looking up and muttering questioningly, "From Mizuno Tatsuya…? Wait, I… Shige!"

"Admit it, you're pleased," Shige teased as Mizuno angrily tugged on the long blond strands of his hair for revenge. "That kind of hurts, Tatsu-bon."

"W-What's with this? This 'chu' you've written here?" Mizuno demanded, pointing at the seal of the envelope with a heated face.

"Well, obviously," Shige explained, rubbing his head with a cheerful smile. "You _did_ seal it with a kiss, didn't you?"

"T-That…! That wasn't on purpose!" Mizuno exclaimed, continuing to fight in attempt to hide his relief that Shige did not have a crush on Kazamatsuri.

"Right, right. If you say so," stated Shige while waving a hand. He smiled widely. "Delivery time!"

* * *

Mizuno tried to stop Shige, he really did. Though it was kind of hard when the blond boy stepped to the side of the field, stood on a chair, and proclaimed loudly to the either club that Kazamatsuri had "special mail." Mizuno was just about to go hide in the clubroom when Kazamatsuri tapped his shoulder.

Turning around to see that kind, shy smile, Mizuno instantly felt his embarrassment and annoyance fade away. Rubbing the back of his neck, he slowly let his gaze drift to the side. "Need something?"

"Oh," the shorter boy said with a blink, as if just realizing he had something to say. Beaming with a slight blush up at Mizuno, Kazamatsuri stated cheerfully, "Thank you, Mizuno-kun."

There was a pause.

Mizuno was confused.

"Y…You're welcome?" Mizuno responded, still slightly confused. "What am I being thanked for?"

"You know, this," Kazamatsuri said, still somewhat embarrassedly, holding up the letter Shige had written. Smiling, he continued, "I really appreciate your words."

Mizuno stood in silence for a few moments before smiling lightly. "Oh, you know…I have a bad memory. What was it that I wrote again?"

Without a second thought, Kazamatsuri handed the letter to Mizuno with a bright smile.

"'To Kazamatsuri Shou, thanks for always working hard in soccer club and getting along with everyone. I'm proud of your achievements and look forward to working with you more. From Mizuno Tatsuya. By the way, this is a love letter!'" Mizuno muttered the letter to himself, eye twitching slightly. "Shige spent an hour writing that little?"

"I know it's really not that much," Kazamatsuri began, staring sheepishly at the ground, "but I'm actually really happy."

Mizuno felt his heart thump awkwardly when Kazamatsuri directed his slightly embarrassed smile and softly flushed face at him.

"Because, well," Kazamatsuri began as he rubbed the back of his neck, "actually, I like you very much, Mizuno-kun. I'm really happy to hear such encouraging words. Thank you."

Kazamatsuri was always smiling cheerfully with a determined expression. To everyone else, that is. It was only to him, Mizuno realized, that Kazamatsuri would smile such a soft and gentle smile. Mizuno found himself unconsciously smiling back with a slight blush. "Those kind of words," Mizuno began, reaching out to pat the boy's shoulder, "you deserve them all the time."

Before either could say another word, Shige's overly cheerful voice rang out, "Kaza! Tatsu-bon! If you two are done dating, we should get back to practice now!"

"Kazamatsuri and Mizuno are dating," Fuwa muttered to himself with a nod. "Data recorded."

Kazamatsuri simply gave a sheepish laugh and with that laugh, Mizuno could only smile as well. Maybe just once he could let Shige and Fuwa get away with such ridiculous comments.

Somehow in that simple letter, with just a kiss, all his sentiments were sealed inside.

Owari.

* * *

**A/N:** Yup, I have indeed been lazing off of writing. XD And considering that, I have to wonder, "what on earth have I been doing these days?" AP tests, I swear. They're time-consuming leeches. :D Anyway, luff for Mizuno and Kazamatsuri!

Thanks for reading!


End file.
